Fluent material container and dispenser

ABSTRACT

A fluent material containing and dispensing apparatus including a hopper having four sidewalls. A tube mounts to one of the sidewalls, and an auger extends from one end of the tube to the opposite end of the hopper, driving material in the hopper through the tube when the auger is rotated. A flexible hose is mounted to the underside of the tube and material in the tube pours into the hose, which can be kinked to slow or stop flow of material. A gap is formed between the outer surfaces of the auger and the tube wall. A radially inwardly extending flange can be mounted to the tube wall to slow the flow of material through the gap. Alternatively, a compressible sleeve can be mounted in the gap between the outer surfaces of the auger and the tube wall extending a substantial length of the tube.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a Continuation-In-Part of copendingapplication Ser. No. 09/241,813 filed Feb. 2, 1999.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The invention relates to a container for dispensing fluentmaterial, including slurries, high viscosity liquids and particulatematter such as gravel, sand and dust.

[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0005] Solid concrete walls are made from assembling wood or metalplates to form a mould having a void that is filled with concrete.Hollow concrete walls are commonly constructed by stacking and cementinghollow concrete blocks on one another. The concrete block wall'sinterior surfaces can serve as a mould for wet cement that is pouredinto the voids and subsequently hardens to make the wall solid concrete.This is referred to as “grouting” a wall, and the concrete slurry thatis poured during grouting is referred to as grout.

[0006] Solid concrete walls, however they are made, are stronger thanhollow walls. Furthermore, solid walls can have reinforcing devices,such as reinforcement bars and wires, inserted in the concrete prior tocuring to further strengthen them. However, grouting walls is difficultwork.

[0007] Conventionally, concrete walls and other concrete structures arepoured or filled by pumping wet concrete long distances through hosesfrom trucks, or using the “bucket and shovel” method in which bucketsare hand loaded, carried and dumped into the moulds. Both of thesemethods have disadvantages, including expensive labor or equipment andlong completion times.

[0008] Alternatively, people have used hoppers with chutes that directconcrete, but such chutes are prone to overflow if the flow of concreteis stopped at the discharge end of the chute. The use of a pump andhoses is a cumbersome process that requires starting and stopping thepump, which does not immediately stop the movement of the flowingconcrete in the hose due to the concrete's inertia. A shutoff valve atthe discharge end of hoses is necessary to immediately stop the flow.However, such valves are complex and normally do not last in theenvironment of wet concrete, even if they are cleaned, which itself is adifficult process. Concrete tends to harden on moving valve parts,eventually preventing movement and thereby rendering the valve useless.

[0009] Therefore, there is a need for a device that permits rapid,inexpensive and accurate filling of voids in block walls and othermoulds. Such a device should limit the amount of spilled concrete, andpermit maximum control for the person pouring the concrete.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The invention is an apparatus for containing and dispensingfluent material. The apparatus includes four main elements: a hopper, anelongated tube, an elongated auger and a hand-flexible hose. Theelements cooperate in such a manner to overcome disadvantages in theprior art. With the present invention, the material drive member, whichis the auger, does not need to be shut off during grouting when theoperator needs to move to another opening. Furthermore, there is littleor no danger of damage to the auger if large particulate matter, such asa stone, becomes lodged between the lands of the auger and the tubesidewall.

[0011] The hopper has a first sidewall including a tube aperture, asecond sidewall, and two other sidewalls. All sidewalls havesubstantially equal length. The sidewalls are joined at fourintersecting corners and define a material-containing chamber with anopen top end for receiving fluent material.

[0012] The elongated tube is rigidly connected at a hopper end of thetube to the first sidewall of the hopper. The tube extends to anopposite, hose end of the tube spaced from the hopper end of the tube.The tube has a cylindrical tube wall including an interior surface thatdefines a tube passage. The tube passage is aligned with the tubeaperture and extends from the hose end of the tube through the tubeaperture to the material-containing chamber of the hopper.

[0013] The elongated auger is mounted within the tube passage andextends substantially coaxially with the tube from a first bearingmounted near the hose end of the tube, through the tube aperture to asecond bearing, preferably a motor, mounted near the second sidewall ofthe hopper. A radial gap is formed between the outer surface of theauger and the interior surface of the tube wall.

[0014] The hose has hand-flexible sidewalls, an interior surfacedefining a hose passage and openings at opposite first and second ends.The first hose end is mounted to a hose mount formed on the tube nearthe tube's hose end. The hose passage communicates with the tubepassage.

[0015] During operation, the auger rotates, driving material from thehopper through the tube toward the hose. As the operator dischargesmaterial from the discharge end of the hose, the void into which thematerial is directed becomes full, necessitating moving the hose toanother void. The operator merely pinches the hose closed with his orher hands and pulls the flexible hose to the next void. The auger neednot be stopped during this movement, because flow through the hose isblocked by the pinched part of the hose, thereby stopping flow ofmaterial.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016]FIG. 1 is a view in perspective illustrating the preferredembodiment of the present invention.

[0017]FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0018]FIG. 3 is a top view in section through the line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

[0019]FIG. 4 is a top view illustrating the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0020]FIG. 5 is a top view illustrating an alternative embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0021]FIG. 6 is a view in perspective illustrating the present inventionin operation and mounted on a forklift.

[0022]FIG. 7 is a view in perspective illustrating the present inventionon a forklift.

[0023]FIG. 8 is a side exploded view illustrating the tube and augerelements.

[0024]FIG. 9 is a view in perspective illustrating the supportmechanisms for the hopper.

[0025]FIG. 10 is a side view illustrating the preferred embodiment ofthe present invention.

[0026]FIG. 11 is a side view in section illustrating an alternativeembodiment of the present invention.

[0027]FIG. 12 is a view in perspective illustrating the mechanism at theback of one of the forklift-receiving box-beams that locks the box-beamsto the forklift.

[0028]FIG. 13 is a side view illustrating the hydraulic hose rest.

[0029]FIG. 14 is a side view in section illustrating the threaded plugof the hose rest.

[0030] In describing the preferred embodiment of the invention which isillustrated in the drawings, specific terminology will be resorted tofor the sake of clarity. However, it is not intended that the inventionbe limited to the specific terms so selected and it is to be understoodthat each specific term includes all technical equivalents which operatein a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose. For example, theword connected or terms similar thereto are often used. They are notlimited to direct connection but include connection through otherelements where such connection is recognized as being equivalent bythose skilled in the art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] The preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown inFIGS. 1-4. As discussed above, the invention includes four maincooperating parts: the hopper 10, the tube 20, the auger 50 and the hose84.

[0032] The hopper 10 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 having four substantiallyequal length sidewalls 12, 14, 16 and 18. The sidewalls join atintersecting corners to form an interior chamber 11 defined by thesidewalls. The sidewalls 14 and 18 have inwardly sloped lower sectionsthat direct material in the lower portion of the chamber 11 toward thechamber's center. The chamber 11 contains approximately three-quartersof a cubic yard of material, and is substantially square when viewedfrom the top for positioning the center of gravity of the materialcontained in the chamber near the center of the hopper.

[0033] The front sidewall 12 of the hopper has an aperture (not shown)near its lower edge that opens into the chamber 11. The hollow,cylindrical tube 20 attaches to the front sidewall 12 with a cylindricalpassage in the tube 20 aligned with the aperture in the front sidewall12. The cylindrical tube passage is defined by the interior surface 22of the tube wall 24 that is preferably circular in section, but could beelliptical or any other polygon shape. Approximately the lower half ofthe tube wall 24 extends beyond the front sidewall 12 to the oppositesidewall 16 to form the bottom wall of the hopper 10. The lateral edgesof this lower half are attached to the lower edges of the sidewalls 14and 18.

[0034] The tube 20 is divided along its length into two sections. Thefixed section 32 is rigidly mounted to the hopper 10. The removablesection 30 mounts to the end of the fixed section 32 farthest from thehopper 10. The connector lip 26 extends around the entire periphery ofone end of the removable section 30. The connector lip 28 extends aroundthe entire periphery of one end of the fixed section 32. When thesections 30 and 32 are mounted together, the lip 26 is aligned with thelip 28, and screws extend from the lip 28 through aligned holes in thelip 26. Nuts are threaded onto the screws to rigidly fix the removablesection 30 to the fixed section 32.

[0035] An auger 50 is mounted inside the tube 20, extending from abearing 52 in the tube endcap 54 to another bearing, preferably thehydraulic motor 56, mounted to the sidewall 16. The bearing 52 ispreferably a low friction polymer, such as that sold under the trademarkDELRIN, having a recess into which the auger's end is inserted. Thehydraulic motor 56 is a conventional motor having a driveshaft intowhich the square, or alternatively the spline, shaft of the auger 50mounts in a conventional manner. The auger 50 can be removed with accessat only one end, because there is no complex connection at the motor 56.

[0036] The motor 56 is preferably connected to the hydraulic lines of aconventional forklift for driving the motor 56 in a manner that isapparent to those skilled in forklift technology. Of course, anelectric, pneumatic, internal combustion or any other conventional motorcould be substituted for the preferred motor 56, as will be apparent toone of ordinary skill in the art.

[0037] The endcap 54 is removably mounted to the free end of the tube 30by conventional means, such as a pair of bolts 58 and 59 that extendthrough ears 60 and 61 formed on the exterior surface of the tube wall24 and through ears 62 and 63 mounted to opposite sides of the endcap54. Upon removal of the endcap 54 by removing the bolts 58 and 59 fromthe ears 62 and 63, the auger can be removed simply by grasping thecross bar 66 shown in FIG. 3 and pulling, thereby withdrawing theopposite end from its matingly engaged connection with the driveshaft ofthe hydraulic motor 56.

[0038] On the underside of the tube 20 is a hose mount 82, which is anannular tube mounted at its upper end to the tube 20. The tube 20 has ahose aperture 80 formed in its underside (see FIG. 3) that is alignedwith a passage in the hose mount 82. The hose 84 mounts to the lower endof the hose mount 82, and the passage within the hose, as defined by theinterior surface of the flexible hose sidewalls, is in fluidcommunication with the passage in the hose mount 82, and therefore thepassage in the tube 20.

[0039] The hose 84 is hand-flexible, which is defined for the purposesof the present invention as able to be substantially deformed by theaverage human's hand when the hose is in operating conditions (humidity,temperature, etc.). For example, a hand-flexible hose includes aconventional garden hose and a conventional rubber-lined,fabric-reinforced fire hose.

[0040] Upon rotation by the hydraulic motor, the auger 50 drives fluentmaterial contained in the hopper chamber 11 toward the endcap 54. Fluentmaterial is defined as material that can flow, and includes highviscosity liquids, such as molasses and sludge, concrete or any otherslurry, and particulate matter such as sand, gravel, coal, iron ore,soil, powder, wood chips and other particulate matter. The rotary motionof the auger 50 drives such material in a conventional manner. Thisdriving force of the auger impels the material from the tube 20 throughthe hose aperture 80, through the hose mount 82 and into the hose 84(see FIGS. 1 and 3). The material eventually pours out the discharge endof the hose that is opposite the end attached to the tube 20.

[0041] The hopper and tube combination is mounted on a plate 90 that issupported from beneath by four inverted rollers 92, 93, 94 and 95 shownin FIGS. 1 and 2. Each of the rollers 92-95 includes a pair of spacedplates with a wheel rotatably mounted in the space between the plates byan axle extending from one plate through the wheel to the other plate.The outer peripheral edge of the wheels seat against the underside ofthe plate 90 at 90 degree intervals around the central post 96, which isa hollow tube into which a shaft (not shown) extends downwardly from theplate 90. The hopper 10 can rotate 360° about the central post 96, andthe rollers 92-95 support the hopper 10 at positions that are spacedradially from the central post 96. As the hopper rotates, the wheelsroll against the underside of the plate 90, thereby supporting the plate90 and the hopper. The wheels are preferably aligned with their axes ofrotation crossing at the central post 96. This configuration provides avery stable structure that permits rotation of the hopper and tubecombination while preventing tipping over. Rotation also permits spaceto be reduced for shipping by rotating until the tube is extended theleast distance from the rest of the machine.

[0042] The lower ends of the plates of the rollers are rigidly mountedto the top surface of the plate 98 with the outer peripheral surface ofthe wheels thereof spaced above the plate 98. A pair of parallelforklift-receiving box-beams 100 and 102 are mounted to the underside ofthe plate 98. The box-beams 100 and 102 receive the forks of aconventional forklift 104 that can support the entire apparatus as shownin FIGS. 6 and 7.

[0043] The inverted rollers 92-95 provide a substantial advantage to thepresent invention. There is a clearance gap, on the order of the wheels'diameter, between the upper surface of the plate 98 and the lowestextreme of the outer peripheral edge of the wheels of the rollers. Thisclearance gap is large enough that any material that pools up on theplate 98 will flow off the plate 98 before it becomes deep enough tocontact the lower edge of the wheels of the rollers 92-95. As a result,this material cannot stick to the wheels and get between the wheels andthe plate 90 against which the rollers' wheels seat. Therefore, theinverted rollers' structure prevents material in the hopper that spillsout from interfering with the rotation of the hopper or support by therollers 92-95.

[0044] The cooperation between the auger, the tube and other structuresis important. In one embodiment, the outer surface of the auger 50 isspaced from the interior surface 22 of the tube wall, forming a gap. Thepreferred gap is approximately one and one-quarter inches, which permitsuse of the apparatus with three-quarter inch aggregate. The gap sizecould be made to be from one half inch to two inches with similarfunctioning of the machine. The variation could be even greater, forexample from between one eighth inch to more than two inches, butdisadvantages relating to pressure and particle size may make such gapsizes prohibitive. There could, of course, be essentially no gap,resulting in wear. However, such a structure may be desirable under somecircumstances, such as when materials that may crush easily, such aslime dust, crusted sand are being used. Other materials that may requiresuch a structure include metal shavings.

[0045] The gap between the outer surface of the auger 50 and the tubewall 24 prevents a high pressure from being created between the interiorchamber 11 of the hopper 10 and the interior passage of the hose 84 thatwould exist without the gap. The high pressure would make it difficultto stop flow of the material without building substantial pressure inthe tube and hose. A smaller gap would create more pressure, and alarger gap would create less. Smaller particulate could bind in asmaller gap, and a larger gap would permit larger particles to passthrough. The size of the gap is determined by the material to bedispensed, and the preferred frequency of replacing the auger or tube.

[0046] The sections 30 and 32 of the tube 20 clampingly retain theflange between the connector lips 26 and 28. The flange is preferably aone-half inch thick rubber or polyurethane plate having an orifice inits center defined by an inner surface 71 for permitting the auger 50 topass therethrough. The flange is positioned to limit the flow ofmaterial from the fixed section 32 of the tube to the removable section30 by occupying, at one point along the length of the auger 50, the gapbetween the outer surface of the auger 50 and the interior surface 22 ofthe tube wall 24. The flange 70 prevents extremely low viscosity (lowslump) slurries from simply emptying into the hose 84 under the force ofgravity and the pressure created thereby in the tube and chamber 11.

[0047] The internal flange edge that defines the orifice in the flange70 preferably seats against the lands of the auger 50. Alternatively theorifice could have a diameter that is larger than the outer diameter ofthe auger, thereby forming a gap between the interior surface 71 and theouter surface of the auger 50, but a gap smaller than that between thetube wall 24 and the outer surfaces of the auger. This would provide asimilar effect to the preferred embodiment, although less of one thanwhen there is no gap. This alternative embodiment would permit largerparticles to pass through the orifice of the flange, and would make theslurry material flow more quickly than the same material in thepreferred embodiment.

[0048] While the auger is rotating, the flange expands outwardly,permitting slurry material to pass through. Once the auger is stopped,the flange contracts around the auger, thereby hindering slurry materialfrom flowing past the flange.

[0049] The flange could, rather than being clamped between the fixed andremovable sections 30 and 32 of the tube 50, be mounted to the interiorsurface of a tube sidewall. As a further alternative, the flange couldbe mounted directly to the auger and extend outwardly to seat againstthe tube sidewall.

[0050] During use, the auger 50 is rotated to promote the flow of fluentmaterial, such as concrete slurry, from the chamber 11, through the tube20, down the hose 84 and out of the opposite hose end. The hose 84 isdirected into, for example, an opening in the interior of a block wall,as shown in FIG. 6. The concrete slurry flows into the opening until itis full and the operator must move the open end of the hose to the nextopening. Before doing so, the operator pinches the end of the hose byhand to stop the flow of material through the hose. Then the outlet endof the hose is moved to the next void. Pinching can be accomplished bysimply compressing the sidewalls by hand at one point alone, orcompressing the sidewalls in combination with folding the hose overitself or around an object.

[0051] During movement of the hose, a slight pulling force on the hosecan rotate the hopper about the central post 96. Rotation of the hopperallows an operator with a small length of hose, such as seven feet, tofill an approximately 20 foot long section of wall. Once the hose ismoved to the next opening, the pinching force is released, therebyopening the discharge end of the hose to permit the flow of concreteslurry into the block opening. A lockdown pin 97 can be extended downfrom the plate 90 into one of four or more apertures formed on the lowerplatform 98 for preventing rotation of the hopper during transport.

[0052] During movement of the hose from one opening to another, there isno spillage of concrete, and there is no requirement to slow or stop theauger. Even if it takes a substantially greater than normal amount oftime to move the hose, such as several seconds, a minute, or more, thereis little danger of spillage or of pressure buildup that will cause hoserupture or leakage.

[0053] The reason there is no pressure buildup is that the auger doesnot create a significant pressure differential between one end of theauger and the other. There is just enough pressure differential that, incombination with the pressure caused by gravity acting on the slurry inthe hopper, slurry material tends to flow toward the hose. As describedabove, the gap between the outer surface of the auger and the interiorsurface of the tube wall 24 allows substantially free flow of material,thereby preventing any large pressure differentials from being created.When the hose 84 is pinched off, the auger continues to rotate, but theconcrete slurry around the auger 50 is not driven toward the hose. Theauger simply rotates in the concrete slurry around it.

[0054] One advantage to the preferred embodiment preventing pressurebuildup is that the hydraulic motor driving the auger 50 does not needto be started and stopped during operation. The operator simply pinchesthe hose and the flow of slurry stops. When slurry is desired to bedischarged from the hose again, the pinching force on the hose is simplyreleased. Therefore, the operator who is pouring the slurry controls theentire machine. And there is no complex valve mechanism at the outletend to become worn out or clogged, or needing regular, time-consumingcleaning.

[0055] The gap around the auger cooperates with the flange and the hose.With the hose, the user can cut off flow of grout at the insertionpoint, and the auger does not need to be stopped, because of the gapthat allows it to simply spin and not impel more material down the hose.When the hose is pinched or kinked, the flange hinders the material thatis being gently impelled by the auger from flowing past the flange intothe hose. Without this flange, it would be too difficult to stop theflow of grout merely by pinching or kinking the hose by hand.

[0056] Stated concisely, without the gap, the auger would tend to forcegrout through the tube at too high of pressure to enable a person tostop the grout by hand kinking the hose. Without the flange, grout couldflow too much by gravity and under the gentle impelling force of theauger into the hose when the hose is being pinched, thereby filling thehose further and possibly creating too much pressure to hold back byhand.

[0057] Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 5.The hopper 110, auger 150 and hydraulic motor 156 are essentiallyidentical to those described and shown in FIGS. 1 through 4. The auger150 is slightly larger in diameter than the auger 50. Instead of aflange, the apparatus shown in FIG. 5 has a compressible, preferablyrubber or polyurethane, cylindrical boot or sleeve 160 occupying the gapbetween the outer surface of the auger and the interior surface of thetube 120. The sleeve 160 extends around the auger the entire augerlength, except in the hopper where the sleeve has an opening to permitmaterial to flow into the auger.

[0058] The interior surface of the sleeve 160 abuts the outer surfaces,referred to as the lands, of the auger 150, along the length of the tube120 except at the hose mount, where an opening is formed in the sleeve.This sleeve provides a substantial seal promoting driving of the slurrytoward the hose (not shown). If a rock or stone is forced between a landand the sleeve 160, instead of the rock breaking or deforming the auger,the sleeve 160 compresses, permitting the particle to pass over theland.

[0059] The present invention includes a hydraulic hose rest 200 shown inFIGS. 2, 13 and 14. The hydraulic motor that preferably drives the augerhas hydraulic hoses 202 and 204 that extend from the hydraulic motor tothe hydraulic system connectors of a forklift, such as the forklift 104shown in FIG. 6. When the apparatus is not mounted to a forklift, thehydraulic hoses 202 and 204 are connected not to the forklift'sconnectors, but the hose rest 200.

[0060] As shown in more detail in FIG. 13, the hose rest 200 has a pairof male connectors 206 and 208 essentially identical to those on aconventional forklift. The male connectors 206 and 208 are threaded ontoa pair of threaded steel plugs 212 and 214, respectively. The steelplugs 212 and 214 are mounted, such as by welds, to a steel plate 216.The hose rest 200, therefore, does not connect the hoses 202 and 204 toa hydraulic system, but merely attaches them to a stable support by aconventional connector.

[0061] When the hydraulic hoses 202 and 204 are not connected to theconnectors of a forklift, they should be mounted to the male connectors206 and 208. This will prevent debris from entering the hydraulic fluidwithin the hoses by contacting the insides of the fittings on the endsof the hoses 202 and 204.

[0062] It is also well known in the construction equipment industry thatwhen hydraulic hoses, which are normally black, are exposed to the suntheir temperature rises. The temperature can change for several reasons,but this is a very common one. This temperature rise increases thetemperature of the fluid within the hoses, causing the fluid to expand.Because there is little room to expand in a hydraulic hose, the pressureof the fluid increases dramatically, making it very difficult to mountthe hose's female connector to a male connector.

[0063] The hose rest 200 has an additional structure that prevents anincrease in pressure. The hose rest thereby functions as a pressurerelease. As is shown in FIG. 14, a longitudinal passage 220 is formed,preferably by drilling, and extends from the end of the plug 212 towhich the male connector 206 mounts to a lateral passage 222. Thelateral passage extends from one side of the plug 212 to the oppositeside, and is preferably formed by drilling.

[0064] When the temperature of the fluid in the hydraulic hose 202increases and the fluid expands, the fluid can push upwardly, as itexpands, through the passage 220 and then the passage 222. This pathfrom the fluid in the hose to the atmosphere prevents any pressure frombuilding up in the first place within the hose, thereby preventing theproblem of re-connecting the hose to another male fitting.

[0065] It has furthermore been found desirable to extend a thin fiber,such as the pair of half round wires of a conventional “cotter” pin 230shown in FIG. 13, through the lateral passage 222. The enlarged end ofthe cotter pin 230 and the bent wires of the opposite end preventhydraulic fluid from squirting straight out of the openings to thelateral passage 222. Any fluid that flows rapidly through the lateralpassage 222 is directed by the cotter pin ends in directions that aretransverse to the axis of the lateral passage 222. Squirting of thefluid is only possible when the hose is first connected to the hose rest200, because once the hose is connected, all pressure is released and nopressure can build up again within the hose due to the passagesconnecting to the atmosphere.

[0066] Of course, the passages of the plug 212 could have virtually anyconfiguration as will be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in theart, so long as the passages lead from the interior of the hydraulichose in fluid communication with the environment or some other lowerpressure container. An alternative low pressure container is a smallreservoir that the fluid drains into, such as a bellows, that expands topermit fluid to enter the bellows, but contracts as the fluid cools,thereby preventing fluid from entering the environment surrounding thehoses.

[0067] While certain preferred embodiments of the present invention havebeen disclosed in detail, it is to be understood that variousmodifications may be adopted without departing from the spirit of theinvention or scope of the following claims.

1. A fluent material containing and dispensing apparatus comprising: (a)a hopper having a first sidewall including a tube aperture, a secondsidewall, and two other sidewalls all of substantially equal lengthjoined at four intersecting corners defining a material-containingchamber with an open top end for receiving fluent material; (b) anelongated tube rigidly connected at a hopper end of the tube to thefirst sidewall, said tube extending to an opposite, hose end of the tubespaced from the hopper end of the tube, said tube having a cylindricaltube wall including an interior surface defining a tube passage alignedwith the tube aperture and extending from the hose end of the tubethrough the tube aperture to the material-containing chamber of thehopper; (c) an elongated auger mounted within the tube passage andextending substantially coaxially with the tube from a first bearingmounted near the hose end of the tube, through the tube aperture to asecond bearing mounted near the second sidewall of the hopper, saidauger forming a radial gap between a radially extreme outer surface ofthe auger and the interior surface of the tube wall; and (d) a hosehaving hand-flexible sidewalls, an interior surface defining a hosepassage and openings at opposite first and second ends, the first hoseend mounted to a hose mount formed on the tube near the tube's hose end,and wherein the hose passage communicates with the tube passage.
 2. Anapparatus in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a flow barrierflange mounted to the interior surface of the tube wall between the hosemount and the hopper end of the tube, the flange extending radiallyinwardly from the tube wall toward the auger for limiting the flow offluent material through the tube from the chamber to the hose mount. 3.An apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the tube comprises: (a)a first tube section extending from the hopper end of the tube to afirst extremity on a first side of the flange; and (b) a second tubesection extending from the hose end of the tube to rigid connection to asecond extremity on the second, opposite side of the flange, wherein theflange is clampingly interposed between the first extremity of the firsttube section and the connected second extremity of the second tubesection.
 4. An apparatus in accordance with claim 3, wherein the flangeextends radially inwardly toward the outer surface of the auger,contacting the auger's outer surface.
 5. An apparatus in accordance withclaim 3, wherein the flange extends radially inwardly toward the outersurface of the auger, forming a gap between an inner surface of theflange and the outer surface of the auger.
 6. An apparatus in accordancewith claim 5, wherein the flange is made of rubber.
 7. An apparatus inaccordance with claim 5, wherein the hose mount is formed on theunderside of the hose end of the tube, and a removable cap is mounted onthe hose end of the tube.
 8. A fluent material containing and dispensingapparatus comprising: (a) a hopper having a first sidewall including atube aperture, a second sidewall, and two other sidewalls all ofsubstantially equal length joined at four intersecting corners defininga material-containing chamber with an open top end for receiving fluentmaterial; (b) an elongated tube rigidly connected at a hopper end of thetube to the first sidewall, said tube extending to an opposite, hose endof the tube spaced from the hopper end of the tube, said tube having acylindrical tube wall including an interior surface defining a tubepassage aligned with the tube aperture and extending from the hose endof the tube through the tube aperture to the material-containing chamberof the hopper, said tube further comprising: (i) a first tube sectionextending from the hopper end of the tube to a first extremity on afirst side of the flange; and (ii) a second tube section extending fromthe hose end of the tube to rigid connection to a second extremity onthe second, opposite side of the flange, wherein the flange isclampingly interposed between the first extremity of the first tubesection and the connected second extremity of the second tube section;(c) an elongated auger mounted within the tube passage and extendingsubstantially coaxially with the tube from a first bearing mounted nearthe hose end of the tube, through the tube aperture to a second bearingmounted near the second sidewall of the hopper, said auger forming aradial gap between a radially extreme outer surface of the auger and theinterior surface of the tube wall; (d) a hose having hand-flexiblesidewalls, an interior surface defining a hose passage and openings atopposite first and second ends, the first hose end mounted to a hosemount formed on the underside of the hose end of the tube near thetube's hose end, and wherein the hose passage communicates with the tubepassage; (e) a flow barrier flange mounted to a portion of the interiorsurface of the tube wall between the hose mount and the hopper end ofthe tube, the flange extending radially inwardly from the tube walltoward the auger for limiting the flow of fluent material through thetube from the hopper to the hose mount, wherein the flange extends tonear the auger, forming a gap between an inner surface of the flange andthe outer surface of the auger; and (f) a removable cap mounted on thehose end of the tube.
 9. A fluent material containing and dispensingapparatus comprising: (a) a hopper having a first sidewall including atube aperture, a second sidewall, and two other sidewalls all ofsubstantially equal length joined at four intersecting corners defininga material-containing chamber with an open top end for receiving fluentmaterial; (b) an elongated tube rigidly connected at a hopper end of thetube to the first sidewall, said tube extending to an opposite, hose endof the tube spaced from the hopper end of the tube, said tube having acylindrical tube wall including an interior surface defining a tubepassage aligned with the tube aperture and extending from the hose endof the tube through the tube aperture to the material-containing chamberof the hopper; (c) a compressible sleeve mounted within the tube, saidsleeve having an interior surface defining a sleeve passage and an outersurface that abuts the interior surface of the tube; (d) an elongatedauger mounted within the sleeve passage and extending substantiallycoaxially with the tube from a first bearing mounted near the hose endof the tube, through the tube aperture to a second bearing mounted nearthe second sidewall of the hopper, said auger having lands abutting theinterior surface of the sleeve; and (e) a hose having hand-flexiblesidewalls, an interior surface defining a hose passage and openings atopposite first and second ends, the first hose end mounted to a hosemount formed on the tube near the tube's hose end, and wherein the hosepassage communicates with the sleeve passage.
 10. A fluid pressurerelease comprising: (a) a fluid connector; (b) a plug mounted to thefluid connector, said plug having a passage extending from fluidcommunication with the fluid connector and a lower pressure region. 11.A fluid pressure release in accordance with claim 10, wherein the lowerpressure region is the environment.
 12. A support apparatus for a vesselsupported above a surface, said support comprising: (a) a central axlepivotably mounted to the vessel; (b) at least three inverted rollersmounted beneath the vessel around the axle, each of said invertedrollers comprising: (i) a wheel rotatably mounted to a wheel axle andseated against the underside of the vessel; (ii) at least one wheelframe member mounted to said wheel axle, and supporting said axle abovethe surface a distance greater than the radius of the wheel.
 13. Asupport apparatus in accordance with claim 12, wherein the rollers arespaced at equal intervals around the central axle.